The way I see it

For more than four months, all that I’ve seen, is out of my windows…..and that’s not much.

One looks out for things that makes one happy.

There’s the TV ( not too fond of watching COVID-19 news, so mainly mass, BTS, cartoons and the occasional vampire movies) .

Then there’s my trusty phone ( I don’t like watching videos since you have to go through so many of them to find something worthwhile).

I do read random stuff that turns up in my Whatsapp groups ( some splendid stuff and some humour that makes my day).

My very entertaining family is majorly busy with online work, online classes, school work, house work, and the like.

My favourite pastime had been googling COVID US and COVID India about 20 times a day.

Although the dreaded numbers were marching northwards, it gave me some satisfaction to see that my developing India was doing better than the developed US.

US was floundering and India’s trajectory was going steadily upward….(was l happy to see that!).

My daughter is studying economics and she enlightened me that an upward curve is not necessarily a good sign.

I google Trump every other hour….he can be really funny with his goof -ups……even bettering my son’s wisecracks.

I lost interest in curves other than the unsightly ones shaping my abdomen.

My son thinks his baby brother is inside and I don’t have the heart to tell him it’s pure fat.

My son knows Trump very well. He told my tonsillitis-affected daughter she should gargle with detergent instead of Betadine.

One great source of lockdown entertainment is the Indians trying to ban China made products.

Although the mandate is to be Aathmanirbhar ( self dependent), the fact is most of the stuff we consume are either Made in China, or Manufactured in Taiwan or Thailand or some other nondescript place using China made stuff , or Made in India with parts sourced from China.

Some of those Made in India tags or made in wherever tags have a lot of spare parts supplied from China….(as does the IPhone) but are getting away with it.

Athmanirbhar is a to some extent a masquerade to hurt China economically for hurting our soldiers. Nobody gets to hurt our army men.

Period.

So China made apps were out.

I paid through my nose to get US,European , Japanese or South Korean brands.. …only to find Made in China written inconspicuously in tiny letters at the backside.

In those few pieces that didn’t have Made in China on their backside, I wondered what percentage of parts of those ultra expensive western products were of Made in China origin.

I’m saying China made and not Chinese as I’m not racist.

It’s the autocratic government of that country (which is probably ill -treating its own people) that is the root of the problem……see now they’re trying their half-baked vaccine on their military.

We have some traders in our group whose businesses have either been struck by COVID or struck with COVID .

Now that the supply-chains have started moving, they peddle some attractive and innovative products at tempting prices.

I genuinely try to help my fellow residents in the complex and refer them to my very limited group of friends.

But then comes the invariable question, “Is this Chinese?”

The invariable answer is “Yes”.

The only genuinely Indian products I could come across were mangoes, barfi , nighties, and the like….and even there I’m like the almonds in the barfi….or the fertiliser for those mangoes….or the cotton for that nightie….may be China made.

And I go “Nooooo, I am not going to buy those cheap, good looking China made magical gloves that can dust, wipe and wash dishes ( provided I put my hands in them to do the work, of course).